In a speech that only fueled more pre-presidential speculation, Chris Christie spoke at the Reagan Library last night, extolling the former president's union-busting virtues. Clearly they are soul mates. Also in common is their closeness to rich puppet-masters. Reagan had GE and all that flowed from that. Christie has a couple of Kochs and more. See the sordid gang HERE. And then read (AND LISTEN!) to the recording of Christie at a recent Koch Brothers confab.
He's a page right out of history!

Tonight, as I write this Troy Davis is being killed by the State of Georgia and a combined posse of vengeance, ignorance and indifference. May Davis and all the Davises past and future be as a eternal spur to the conscience of this country until the death penalty is permanently erased.

The Symbol of Justice is being redesigned today and here's the updated version.

The Troy Davis execution is scheduled for 7PM tonight. The Georgia parole board, clearly a group of high moral certitude is able to take the life of a man about whose conviction there is extreme doubt, with no physical evidence in the case, with testimony recanted by almost all witnesses, with calls from the Pope, Desmond Tutu, Jimmy Carter and over 600,000 letters and petitions. As of this writing he has been refused his request to take a polygraph test this afternoon.

Mr. Davis is quickly becoming a symbol for the all the reasons we can't have a death penalty in this country. Even if you had no moral misgivings with the penalty you must still agree, based on overwhelming evidence (over 130 exonerations so far) that the death penalty cannot be administered competently. You must ask yourself if it is possible for one innocent person to be put to death. If there answer is yes, which it most certainly is, then you must say whether or not you are fine with that. Then ask if you would be fine with 2. Or 3. Or 130. or 1000. Next question: what's your number? If you have a good number that's not zero, you would then have to say why that would be your cut off and not the next number up. Unless an unlimited number of innocent deaths is fine with you, you cannot be in favor of one. It is time for some decent human beings in positions of power in Georgia to make noise and spare Davis. And it is past time for all of us to make noise about this disgraceful blot on our country.

Troy Davis is scheduled to die Weds. But there are way too many questions about the case and this broken system must respond at least to that. PETITION HERE
From the TIMES:
A parade of witnesses have recanted since the original trial, and new testimony suggests the prosecution’s main witness might be the killer.There are racial undertones — Mr. Davis is black and the victim was white — and legal cliffhangers, including a stay in 2008 that came with less than 90 minutes to spare and a Hail Mary pass in 2009 that resulted in a rare Supreme Court decision.Altogether, it had the makings of a story that has grabbed many armchair lawyers and even the most casual opponent of the death penalty.
The list of people asking that the Georgia parole board offer clemency has grown from the predictable (Jimmy Carter, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, the Indigo Girls) to the surprising, including 51 members of Congress, entertainment heavyweights like Cee Lo Green and death penalty supporters including William S. Sessions, a former F.B.I. director, and Bob Barr, a former member of Congress, and some leaders in the Southern Baptist church. (Unlike some other states, in Georgia the governor cannot commute a death sentence; only the parole board can.)

Sen. Joe Manshin (D WV), is seen here pondering the new jobs bill from Pres. Obama. Manshin: "I have serious questions about the level of spending that President Obama proposed." Turns out the War on America Gang in the House has a powerful ally in the Senate . . . DEMOCRATS. So-called "Blue Dogs", "centrists", etc. They not only mimic Republican talking points but adopt their philosophy, that tax increases are always wrong, no matter how unequal the deal. Obama is weak and in a box. The Congress is owned and operated by corporate interests who are outlawing the truth. What the overwhelming consensus of economists of all stripes is (that we need more stimulus) doesn't matter when it is surrounded by media, the Republican Party and here, Democrats who want to live in what they think is a safe pre-recession fantasyland.
Obama never really sized up his enemies. Now we see he doesn't even understand his friends.

If we ever wondered why the GOP obsessed about imaginary “death panels” in 2010, we can get a glimpse of the answer in the debate the other night when the AUDIENCE at the GOP Tea Party Debate howled, “Let Him Die!” when the question was put to Ron Paul about an indigent coma patient. They, obviously hate the idea of “death panels” because they have a larger Death Agenda. For patients, children, people in trouble of all kinds. The Pro-Life party, parties hard for the unborn to hook the boobs into the tent. And then, too late, they are seen for what they are, the Party of Death. Like this perfect and perfectly apPAULling moment with the good doctor.

Polls tell us that the run-off tomorrow for Anthony Weiner’s congressional seat will go to the Republican, Bob Turner, famous for creating the Jerry Springer Show! For such a person to go to Congress from the 9th District, NY, he would need a kind of unique springboard. As they say.

This week's Village Voice nails on the head what is the third level of 9/11. First was the event, second was the Bush response which killed many more people pointlessly , completely emptying the treasury, causing economic and political upheaval in the US as well as much more untold suffering now and to come. The third is the despicable abuse of 9/11. Sorry to rain on the party today, but to the extent this moves from solemnity to celebration I am not only off the bus but okay about saying that 9/11 has to a great degree become a circus.9/11, The Winners by Graham Rayman lays it out clearly. From the Port Authority, Rudy Giuliani, museums, merchandisers, phoney charities and private hucksters collect handsomely on the accumulated grief of good people in this city and elsewhere.
Lower manhattan real estate is booming on 9/11 subsidies. Giuliani now has a net worth of $52.2 million. The Sept. 11 Memorial and Museum pays its top employees in the neighborhood of $2-300,000.00 each. The NY Police Commissioner Kelly makes $200,000. Books make millions and there is even one by Jesee "The Body" Ventura. The Lieb Family bottles a 9/11 wine that sells for $9.11.
On this day I want to think and reflect on the lives here and in DC and PA that were lost. To remember where I was on that day and how awful it was. I don't need Matt Lauer or Piers Morgan or Jimmy Kimmel to help me through this. I don't need to look at photos, film or any bad art. For me it is a huge hole in the world, where humanity were blown up with part of the city. And then came every possible bad, greedy and stupid decision possible by the sleaziest group of pols in US history; our luck. And then. as the final insult, came an army of very, very rich entertainers.
For me tonight is a good night to be with people I love. Really connect with why I am grateful to be alive and in their company. And maybe, turn to something that does not partake of horrifying bullshit. Maybe John Coltrane.
This spread is opposite the Voice piece. Perhaps the irony is intentional by the editor. Still kind of perfect in any case.

The media couldn’t soften what happened last night: in the debate the GOP was put in a hot spot. It was clearly looking at the stark choice it faces: the soul-less Romneybot 5000, or Perry-the-Hun. Perry brought the Climate Change Wildfires now consuming Texas to the Reagan Library, spouting severe nut-job positions about global warming (oh, Irony, once again, you are the loneliest guy in town), social security etc. All Romney had to do was watch him burn. But if the GOP electorate is similarly afflicted (the audience at the Reagan event couldn’t stop applauding Perry’s 234 executions! “Can you sleep at night?” was the question!!! Clearly these people really get their Z’s, in the Reagan tradition) they may actually give this to Perry, as we saw, an instant self-killing candidate. So if that looks likely, what will the pros do? I suspect they are getting on others to run. The Kochs are lately loving up the Jersey Zip Code, perhaps whispering in his chubby ear. And the Divine Sarah is looming. Maybe Rudy and Ryan. America’s near-death thrill ride is on.